The Devil Finds Work for Idle Hands

or

"The Devil made me do it!"

You may recall that we Dreamers were stranded in Florida waiting for a windshield, and then for medical tests and their results. OK, so I did take a brief sojourn to California by myself. But, before that we had a lot of time when almost everyone had left our resort and no activities were scheduled, and it was too darn hot to do much outside. We aren't shoppers (in the usual sense). I'm not much for sun bathing or hanging out at the pool.  I entertain myself with painting, writing and sewing, but after a while, participating in those pastimes is awkward and/or confining on the motorhome. We had cabin fever and needed to get out. So, get out we did. We went to look at model homes here and there. We both knew that at some point in the future we would want to take the wheels away and have a real home some place in Florida. We took this opportunity to see what was out there ,and where. We visited a number of developments, and walked through many homes. A lot of them were lovely. Many of them were well beyond our budget. Some were too far out in the countryside. Many were in congested traffic areas. Some homes were too close to others.

Then, we found it. The house was Perfect... with a capital "P"! We knew it the minute we walked into it. First, the house had an extended 3-car garage, so there would be plenty of room for the Mister's workshop. Second, one of the bedrooms was 15' X 12'. Wow! My longarm sewing machine will fit, and then some! The house is in Babcock Ranch, the first solar-powered "city". The first homes became available just over a year ago, so the community is still new, and everyone is open to meeting new people and forming new friendships. The developer has grandiose plans for this "city", with shops, meeting places, sports opportunities and even a school. It is beginning to grow quickly.

After much discussion we decided that we liked the idea of this community. All the people we met were very friendly. We like that this isn't limited to 55 years of age and over. Most of the homes on this street are owned by snowbirds. Thus we have similar interests. However, it's fun to see the kids. We like the idea of being in on the ground floor instead of coming into an established community. We might have an opportunity to shape what the community will have to offer. The community is going to be huge, with a 5-year or longer buildout. (Constant construction is a downfall, however) We like that the house is just under a mile from the main entrance. We won't have to drive miles through a community to get to our home. The house is close to a community clubhouse, pool, and a walking trail that leads to a dog play area. After many visits to the sales models and discussions with the builder's representative, and consideration of building the same home on a different lot, we decided to buy the house.

We closed in September, and began moving things into the home when we returned to Florida. Before leaving the area for California we did order some furniture. This season we will participate in events at the RV resort and in our new community, as we can easily go back and forth and spend a night here or there. We will probably sell the motorhome in the spring. We also talked about selling the house in California, as we no longer need something that large. However, we discovered how much we love that location, too. Perhaps we'll revisit that again next year. Who knows. Obviously, we don't! We didn't even know we were going to consider buying a house in Florida this year!

Recently the furniture arrived. We thought we bought a lot. We still need so much more! However, we do have spots for folks to sit, and the empty house echo has gone, so we can take our time and have fun finding the perfect pieces(s)!

Another day dawns... who knows what this day will bring!